Switching Up the Royalties
by RS-V22
Summary: When a mysterious flower causes Prince Gumball to end up in Marshall Lee's body, Marshall Lee in Flame Prince's body, and Flame Prince in Prince Gumball's body, Fionna and Cake must find the Switch Witch whom they believe can reverse the spell just as she had casted it.
1. Chapter 1

**SWITCHING UP THE ROYALTIES**

"I wonder what's inside it, Cake?" Fionna asked, looking at the box in Prince Gumball's hands with raging curiosity.

Cake shrugged. "How should I know, Sister?" Though she said the words in an offhand tone, she also kept her eyes on the box.

"Open it, Gumball," Cake suggested.

Prince Gumball was still staring at the box in his hands; it seemed he hadn't moved for a solid ten minutes, more or less, since finding it at the castle gates and picking it up. "I'm...not sure, Cake. What if this is another one of Ice Queen's tricks?"

"Scared, aren't you, Bubba?" Marshall Lee taunted with a sneer, five feet above Prince Gumball.

"No way," Prince Gumball snapped, glaring at Marshall Lee.

Flame Prince was a few inches away from Prince Gumball; he didn't do so much as pay attention or join either side of the bickering royalties. He did glance once at Prince Gumball, then at Marshall Lee, then shrugged with a muttered, "Just hope they're not talking about _me_."

Soon, the suspense was killing Fionna and Cake. Cake, who kept her eyes on the box the whole time, now had her lips pressed in a tight line; Fionna gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into tight fists.

"If _you_ won't open it, Gumball," Fionna began in a strained and wary voice, "_I_ can open it for you."

"No, I got it," Gumball said quickly. He stared at the box just once more for one second with cautious eyes then finally moved his hands to open it.

Neither Fionna nor Cake moved. They stood where they were, ignoring the urge to get a closer look at the box's contents. Marshall Lee floated closer, and even Flame Prince walked two inches near.

The moment Prince Gumball took the lid off the box...

"Huh?" Prince Gumball stared blankly at the object he took out from the box. "It's...a flower?"

Fionna moaned. "Aww. And here I thought it would be something cool..."

Prince Gumball stared at the flower he was holding, looking thoroughly confused. "You don't think...someone would send me a flower, do you? I...don't understand..."

"I think someone's you've got a secret admirer, Gumball," Cake said matter-of-factly.

Marshall Lee made a sound that clearly sounded like a disagreement.

Flame Prince, on the other hand, seemed to be in complete agreement with Cake's theory; he looked at her from the corner of his eye and nodded once.

"The Ice Queen?" Fionna guessed.

Cake shook her head. "I don't think so. Well, sure, that hag's been trying to get her hands on the prince, but why bother with _flowers_?"

While Fionna and Cake were deep in thought, debating on who'd actually sent the Prince a flower, the three royalties—the two princes and the king, as a matter of fact—looked at the flower, trying to decipher the meaning behind the whole gesture of having it sent to Prince Gumball's castle. The flower itself looked magnificent, but there was something about it that was sinister as well...

Suddenly, the flower's petals fell out and it gave off a strange, pink-hued smoke that practically covered up Prince Gumball, Flame Prince, and Marshall Lee; it happened all so quickly that none of them had time to realize what was going on and hold their breaths. All three coughed from the smell (which, by the way, wasn't stink—the scent was strong and potentially sickening) and when the two girls looked at them they couldn't see any of their faces due to the thickness of the smoke.

"What the—" Fionna gasped.

Cake hissed with shock, her tail frizzing out.

The smoke vanished before Fionna could move a step or spring into action, and the coughing stopped as well. Below, Prince Gumball no longer held the flower; it was below his feet, and it had somehow turned to ashes.

Fionna's eyes widened. What had _that_ been all about?

"Fionna? Is that you down there—Ouch! My head just hit the ceiling!" Prince Gumball hissed in pain.

Fionna looked up immediately, and felt even more confused. Because she was sure she wasn't imagining Gumball's voice—so sure she heard it from _above_.

But instead of expecting to see Prince Gumball himself (which was partly the reason behind some of her confusion—how in the world did Gumball get up?!), she saw Marshall Lee, eyes closed, caressing his head with a grimace.

Fionna just couldn't make it add up.

"I...thought I heard PG's voice...?" Fionna breathed, her head starting to spin.

She looked around and finally saw Prince Gumball staring at the wall, but his expression was very unlike him; he looked like he wanted to destroy something, like he was enraged from what had just happened—which was weird because PG was never really a volatile person.

Her eyes then shifted to the Flame Prince, who looked calm and level...and also eyeing Cake with a smirk. Fionna shook her head—Flame Prince never wore _that_ expression before.

It only made her all the more surprised when FP sneaked toward Cake, who was totally distracted as she scrutinized the flower (well, the _ashes_ of the flower, clearly), and gave off a noise that clearly sounded like a snarl. Though it didn't make Fionna jerk with shock, it was enough to get Cake screaming.

"Strange, Flame Prince doesn't _normally_ act like that...," Fionna muttered.

"FP, what'd you do _that_ for?!" Cake demanded angrily after she recovered from her shock.

Flame Prince gave a blank look. "Huh? What do you mean, _'FP'_?"

Cake blanched, not because it seemed as if FP were feigning memory loss, but because his voice didn't belong to him at all. The voice belonged to…

"Hold _on_," Cake said in a stressed tone, her tail frizzing out again. "What is wrong with this scene?! Nothing here is making any sense!"

"Ugh, you're right," Fionna agreed, rubbing her forehead as if to wipe off the headache caused by all the confusion.

The three boys somehow reacted to Cake's outburst in a way. Prince Gumball tore his eyes away from the wall. Marshall Lee opened his eyes. Flame Prince looked away from Cake and looked around him.

It was a second of dead silence. And then…

All three gasped and shouted at the same time:

"You're ME!"

"I can't BELIEVE I'm YOU!"

"NO WAY!"

Prince Gumball shouted, "What are you doing in _my_ body, you _impostor_!" (Fionna and Cake recoiled at the sound of Flame Prince's voice in PG's body.) He then swayed his arm forward as if he was going to hurl something at Flame Prince, but there was nothing. He then looked at his own hands in horror. Then he sniffed himself then his face screwed a little. "Why…do I smell like _gum_…?"

"Hey, I don't like that look on your face!" Prince Gumball bellowed. The girls looked up (and flinched) to hear PG's voice in Marshall Lee's body. "Do you have a problem with the way I smell?!"

"Bubba, I can't _believe_ you're in my body." Marshall Lee's voice was full of disdain. The two followed his voice and gaped when they saw that it had come from Flame Prince's body. He looked up at Marshall Lee (well, PG in Marshall Lee's body, rather), his face a fierce scowl.

"What's happening here?!" Fionna retched.

"Girl, looks to me like those three switched bodies," Cake said, her voice certain. "Look, PG's in Marshall Lee's body; Marshall Lee's in Flame Prince's body; Flame Prince's—"

"—in Prince Gumball's body…?" Fionna finished in a tiny voice, though her face relaxed, now that all the confusion was cleared up.

"Maybe that flower has something to do with it," Cake said. "It's a spell of some sort!"

"Oh no!" PG (in Marshall Lee's body) facepalmed himself. "I'm supposed to be in Cinnamon Bun's place—I promised her I'd show up tonight! I can't go looking like _this_!"

"Hmm." Marshall Lee (in FP's body) looked at the castle doors. He walked toward them and opened the doors, then—tentatively—he stretched his hand out to the sun. "Huh, I'm not blistered!" His face stretched into a huge grin. He then ran outside, shouting with joy. "This ROCKS!"

"Marshall Lee!" PG angrily bellowed; he tried to float a little lower (with very little success) and chased the vampire king, who was outside enjoying himself. He failed at first—he ended up bumping the wall above the double doors—but he managed to go lower and got out, only to get burned by the sun. He hissed at the pain.

Marshall Lee jeered. "_Now_ you know what it's like to be me, Bubba!"

PG growled. "Watch it, Marshall!"

"Catch me if you can," he taunted further, snickering at PG's discomfort at his body. He didn't seem afflicted by the prince's threat at all. "_If_ you can go outside!"

"Just you wait! This isn't something to enjoy, Marshall! Just wait…till I find a hat…or umbrella…or something!"

Marshall Lee stuck his tongue out at Prince Gumball, then ran off.

Fionna and Cake looked after him with a grimace.

"Well, at least _someone_ seems to be enjoying himself," Cake commented.

"That impostor took off with my body!" Flame Prince (in PG's body, of course!) growled, shaking his fists angrily, then he sighed. "I just hope he doesn't try to soak himself in the water…."

"Flame Prince!" Prince Gumball called. He tried to get his feet on the floor, but wound up with his _face_ flat to the floor instead. "Thank _goodness_ this floor is heavily carpeted," he muttered to himself.

"What do you want, Gumball?" Flame Prince asked, though his tone was not generous; it was most likely due to the irritation of Marshall Lee being in his body.

"If we're gonna be stuck like this for the day, can _you_ go to Cinnamon Bun's house in my stead? Please?" He sighed. "I'm not going to show up at her place when I'm in Marshall Lee's body."

FP brooded over it for a moment, and then:

"Sure, I guess. It'll be nice if I get to see more places and people outside the Fire Kingdom…."

PG breathed, "Thanks, Flame Prince. Just don't tell her who you really are, though. Make her think you're me."

"What do I have to do?"

While PG was explaining to FP about the events that were likely to take place when visiting Cinnamon Bun's house, Fionna and Cake were busy with their own discussions. Cake held the ashes of the flower. "If we're gonna save them, how do you think we'll know how to reverse the spell?"

"Let's ask the one who gave this flower in the first place," Fionna suggested.

"Good thinking, girl," Cake said, then grimaced. "If we knew where he or she is!"

"Well," Fionna hedged. "There wasn't much except the flower and the box…." Then the two exchanged a wide-eyed look and said in unison, "The box, of course!"


	2. Chapter 2

The two searched for the box and found it exactly where Prince Gumball had dropped it when the three all coughed and practically suffocated with the smoke. Cake picked it up and examined it. "Hmm...Nothing out of the ordinary, girl."

"I _thought_ so, Cake," Fionna sighed.

"Hold on, girl," Cake suddenly said, "I just found something written on the bottom."

The two looked at the words written on the bottom of the box, which was pretty tiny:

_So, had enough of all that fighting?_

_I knew you'd want to come to me eventually._

_Well, until you guys know how to handle being in each others' shoes..._

_Enjoy being who you are—or should I say...who you're NOT!_

_-The Switch Witch_

"Jeez, just who is this 'Switch Witch'?" Cake grumbled.

"I haven't heard of her, either." Fionna shrugged. "But that doesn't mean we won't find her."

"I guess we have to try finding her—but hello, girl, this is the Land of Aaa! This 'Switch Witch' can be anywhere!"

"Then let's start looking for her right now!" Fionna suggested.

Cake groaned. "Ohh...some trip _this_ is going to be! Well, let's do it..."

* * *

The duo traveled through swamps and mountains, looking for the witch who'd caused (and hopefully could fix) the problem, but their search remained fruitless.

"I'm hungry, girl," Cake complained. The rain had just started and they were practically soaked. "Add to that we look like a couple of half-drowned cats—though I literally _am_ one—and I'm tired! Can't we put this off?!"

"Cake, we went too far for us to put this off," Fionna said. "Besides, I'm not sure if Prince Gumball, Flame Prince, and Marshall Lee can handle not being in their bodies."

Something dawned on Cake. "Speaking of which, I wonder how the boys are doing?"

* * *

_Meanwhile:_

"Argh! For someone called a 'Vampire King,' he sure doesn't have any _decent_ clothing!" Prince Gumball complained with a groan. He threw his arms up in frustration as he saw the contents of Marshall Lee's closet.

He floated (awkwardly—he still couldn't get the hang of it) around the room that belonged to the owner of his surrogate body with hopes of finding a less outrageous set of clothes, but so far his searches resulted to nothing.

Having no choice, he sighed and went back to the vampire king's closet and looked for the least "scariest" of the outfits.

* * *

_In the Candy Kingdom:_

"So, Prince Gumball, what do you think should I add to this concoction?" Cinnamon Bun [female] asked.

"Um," Flame Prince fidgeted, unsure about what he _thought_ was right. The real owner of his body, Prince Gumball, had assured him the whole visit was going to be easy, but how could it be if throughout the first twenty minutes of his staying in Cinnamon Bun's house the conversation was full of nothing but _science_?

"Prince Gumball?" Cinnamon recalled in a very mumbled voice.

"Oh, uh,"—Flame Prince tried to sound subdued so the difference between his voice and PG's wouldn't be so obvious—"I _think_ you have to pour that green stuff in that, uh—what was that, 'flask'?—and heat some of that green powder and add a bit of that white stuff..." FP bit his lip as he somehow prayed fervently his words wouldn't give away.

He was surprised to see Cinnamon Bun look at her oddly.

"What are you looking at?" he thundered, his eyes blazing.

Cinnamon Bun jerked back at the heat of PG's voice (or who she _thought_ was PG but could never pinpoint he was actually FP); she had no idea the Prince of the Candy Kingdom was capable of such an outburst.

"N-nothing!" she stammered, quickly taken aback by the prince's fiery gaze.

FP huffed. "It _better_ be nothing!"

FP then turned his back on Cinnamon Bun and looked at the test tubes, flasks, lab burners and all the lab tools set up. His eyebrows pulled up.

Cinnamon Bun muttered under her breath, "Definitely acting really strange—usually he would know what all these doohickeys are about...But now he can't seem to figure out anything about even one of these stuff. And is it me or is he starting to act all snappish and hot-headed—"

"Stop whispering!" Flame Prince bellowed; Cinnamon Bun cringed.

Flame Prince blinked when Cinnamon Bun's scared expression registered in him; he took a deep breath and said words that he didn't even think about thoroughly. "Is there a bathroom around here?"

Cinnamon Bun nodded, afraid that if she'd talk her voice would tremble.

FP hastily went to where Cinnamon Bun pointed him to go, and as soon as he was gone the latter sighed and said, "The prince is starting to scare me—what's with him?"

* * *

_The forest not far from the Tree Fort_:

"Gee, so far this is the longest I've gone _walking_," Marshall Lee said to himself, amused. "I wonder how Bubba's doing." He checked the trails of flames his body left behind.

"Huh, it's no wonder FP hasn't been outside the Fire Kingdom lately. Everything burns where he walks—or rather, where _I_ walk, technically." He laughed and lay down on the grass, which quickly set ablaze. "I just hope Bubba knows better not to mess with my bass guitar...or else. Oh,"—he focused on the clouds and noticed that the sun was beginning to set. "Amazing! I've done what I haven't done in over a thousand years—I've walked on broad sunlight a whole day till the sun set! Personally, I don't see what Bubba finds so horrible about this whole switch thing. Okay, not being able to float and change forms is a thorn on my side—but it's not enough to make me just as desperate."

Marshall Lee waited for the sun to disappear before he stood up (behind him, forming his shape, were burnt grass) and trudged to FP's house. Just along the way, he stopped when he found a river. "Hmm. I wonder how much it hurts whenever FP touches water—does it hurt as much as being in sunlight?" Unable to suppress his curiosity, he experimentally dipped his hand in the river, then jerked it away quickly.

"Ouch! Well, to say 'ouch' is an understatement; but honestly, this isn't as bad as being burnt in the sun even by half." He went away from the river and continued walking till he found the house that belonged to owner of his body.

Marshall Lee scrutinized it with a grunt. FP's house was nothing more than wood and sticks on fire. "How does that royal hothead get inside a place like _this_?"

* * *

_Back to Fionna and Cake:_

"I wonder where can we get food?" Cake wondered aloud, hoping Fionna could hear her and so they could at least take a break from their so far fruitless searching.

"Over there." Fionna pointed to a tree laden with fruits, which was atop a cliff twenty feet away and sixty-plus feet high. "Let's go settle for those. Or if you don't want the fruits, Cake, we could settle for noodles..."

"No, no," Cake said quickly, knowing if she'd stick to the noodles, they'd have to eat them raw. Fionna'd always insisted noodles didn't have to be cooked to be eaten. Fruits were way better than raw and dried-out noodles. "You stay here and I'll go get them." And she stretched her legs longer to reach the cliff and started picking some fruits. After the fourth fruit, something pricked at Cake's hand.

"Hey!" she complained.

"Watch it! You nearly poked my eye with those claws of yours!" an angry voice chirped.

Cake quickly withdrew her hand. "Uh, sorry, I guess."

A blue-colored bird flew out of the tree, his expression annoyed. "You know, if you wanted to pick fruits from this tree _without_ nearly hurting anyone, would it hurt to say 'please'?"

Cake blinked. "Guess I forgot 'bout that."

"What's going on there, Cake?" Fionna called from below.

"Nothing, Fionna, just a blue bird from the tree," Cake called back.

That got Fionna to thinking. Apparently they weren't having much success with finding the Switch Witch. Maybe, just maybe, the blue bird might have some insights.

"Hey, Cake, can you try asking the blue bird if he knows the Switch Witch?" she shouted to her feline companion.

"Really? You think this guy will know something about the witch? Well, it's worth a shot." Cake turned to the blue bird. "Hey, uh, birdie, do you happen to know someone named the Switch Witch?"

The bird eyed her suspiciously. "What do you want to know about the Switch Witch?"

"So does that mean you _do_ know a thing or two about her?"

The bird shook his head. "Not really. But my friend does."

"Your...friend...?"

"Sure, from what I know he's even met her. My friend's over there. See that river?" He pointed to a flowing body of water, a handful of distances away from where Cake stood. "He's the fox somewhere across the river. Try asking him and you just might get what you're looking for. Oh, and will you hurry up? I was napping till you nearly poked me. Are you through picking fruits?"

"Huh? Oh, sure."

"Then get out of here!"

"Okay, okay!" Cake hastily went back down and back to Fionna.

"So, how did it go?" Fionna asked.

"Girl, I found out that where we can get better info 'bout this switchin' spellcaster—we have to talk to the bird's pal on the other side of the river." She pointed to their next destination.

"Okay, Cake, let's get going as soon as we finish our quick break."

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** (Ignore if you feel you know the answer to this topic.)

This chapter took at lot of speculating: Does PG have an interest in science like PB? I've been wondering about that. But in the end, I decided...yes.

Look at the things I've noticed:

Fionna and Cake have the same taste in adventure as Finn and Jake.

Marshall Lee appears to have an interest in music like Marceline, since in the opening sequence he was shown to own a guitar similar to hers.

So...is it so hard to believe that PG has the same interest in science like PB?

...Okay, I've been speculating for far too long.

Just continue on to Chapter Three.


	3. Chapter 3

Fionna and Cake finally made it to the river, where right across it the blue bird's friend with all the Switch Witch intel lived.

"Let's cross this river!" Fionna exulted, tensing to jump in.

"Hey, now, I'm not crossing that body of river and getting myself wet!" Cake protested with a hiss.

"Aw, come on, Cake; I know you don't mean that!" Well, sure, cats—in the abstract—_hate_ water, but even Cake would know perfectly well now was not the time to hinder the quest for convenience's sake.

"I know, girl, but I didn't mean we were going to swim across this river; I meant there's a way for us to cross without doing so much as dive in." She stretched her legs, as if Fionna were missing the obvious. Then she doubled her size. "Hop on, sister."

Fionna did as she was told, and they managed across. "I still think it would be more fun to swim," she insisted with a mutter.

"Fox guy? Where are you?" Cake called.

"Hey, look!" Fionna pointed toward a retreating figure somewhere among the thick shrubs of the forest. "Maybe that's him!"

"Fox guy...or Mr. Fox...or whatever, wait!" Cake called while chasing the silhouetted figure; Fionna followed closely behind, sword in hand. Cake looked at her best friend questioningly, but the human girl just shrugged and said, "Who knows? What if it's _not_ the fox guy?"

Cake stretched her legs longer to cover longer bounds. "Hold it, whatever you are; if you're not the fox guy, maybe you can at least tell us where he might be?"

"And maybe you could prove you're not the bad guy?" Fionna chimed in.

The shadowed figure slowed; it seemed to be debating whether to believe their words or not. Then:

"All right, ladies, why're you so interested in this Switch Witch?" the fox's husky voice asked.

"Your blue bird friend told us you know something about this spellcasting who-hah," Cake said.

"And she was the one who casted the spell that made out friends all switched-up, and since she was behind this spell, she should also be the one to fix it," Fionna said.

The fox seemed deep in thought.

"Well, guy? Will you tell us about this witch?"

"Hmm...Okay, fine. The witch you're looking for is found somewhere just off The Sea of Something, not in the islands, mind you; when you find the sea just turn to your right—you'll find the opening of her place hidden within the multitude of palm trees."

"Got it," Fionna said eagerly. "Let's go, Cake."

"You think this witch won't be a threat to us?" Cake asked skeptically. "Maybe we should ask the fox first..."

Fionna snorted. "Duh, sword!"

"Who knows? That way we won't end up like the rest of those guys back there." She jerked her thumb behind her, referring to their apparently switched-up friends.

* * *

_Back in Marshall Lee's house:_

"Argh! What have I done now?!" Prince Gumball shrieked. Apparently his body had taken a multi-tentacled form, and his size was practically taking up the whole of the living room. "I hate admitting this, but I _really_ wish Marshall Lee were here."

Then, right on cue somehow, the owner of PG's "borrowed" body came inside his house, very careful not to burn anything with his flaming body, which was also "borrowed."

Flame Prince (who's actually Marshall Lee inside) appraised the living room, then his real body with a smirk. "Confound it," he muttered, looking at what Prince Gumball had morphed his real body into. "You'd think that a know-it-all science geek would know how to handle everything."

"Oh, just shut up and tell me how to change back to normal," PG snarled.

"No way, I came here to get my guitar."

"How are you so sure you won't burn it to cinders?"

"My guitar isn't made of wood, Bubba."

"And the strings?"

"Hmm...Good question. Well, I don't see why it should matter to _you_."

"How'd you get here, anyway? Did you walk all the way here?'

"Only when I was in front of your—I mean, _my_ lawn. But the rest of the way, I morphed into a giant fireball. It's kind of the same with floating, except it won't be fun when it rains."

Prince Gumball looked at Marshall Lee with an expression that was a mixture of confusion and amazement.

Marshall Lee noticed that. "I can shapeshift, Bubba, so changing into a giant ball of fire is no problem to me," he said the words like Prince Gumball was missing the obvious.

Prince Gumball cleared his throat.

"Sheesh, okay, _okay_—but only because I'm worried you might destroy the house."

PG _harrumph_ed.

"Now, Bubba, listen to what I have to say..."

* * *

_Cinnamon Bun's house:_

"Are you okay there, Prince?" Cinnamon Bun knocked on the bathroom door.

Her voice barely registered in Flame Prince. He was busy marveling at the water. Running water washed across the hand of Prince Gumball's body, but no pain of some sort was felt.

"Weird. I'm not...hurt," Flame Prince mumbled.

Another knock on the door. "Prince Gumball?"

"Okay, I'm coming," he finally said, then bolted out of the bathroom.

"You sure took some time there," Cinnamon Bun said.

"I...uh..." Flame Prince seemed at loss for words. He couldn't explain to her that he was amazed at his "ability" to get wet without being harmed. Cinnamon Bun would think he'd been touched at the head.

"Uh-_huh_..." Cinnamon Bun clutched at the seam on her dress. "So...do you want to continue with the experimentation, or did you apparently forget how to do it?"

"I...forgot, sorry." This time Flame Prince didn't have to lie; even if PG had told him about the concoctions and all the whatnot, he still wouldn't be able to figure it out anyway. "Maybe some other time, I'll remember."

"Sure thing," Cinnamon Bun said quickly, though there was a hint of suspicion in her eyes; it immediately worried FP—was she going to see right through his external façade?

He was just about to open his mouth to speak—maybe in an attempt to distract her before the scrutinizing got more and more focused—when Cinnamon Bun finally shrugged and said, "How about next week, then? Same day, same time, same place?"

FP sighed in relief. "Deal."

"Okay, I'll just help you bring all this equipment back in your castle."

* * *

_Back to Fionna and Cake:_

"We finally made it!" Cake shouted at the top of her lungs. In front of the duo was their reached destination—The Sea of Something.

"Let's go see the Switch Witch!" Fionna rammed her way toward the multitude of palm trees with her sword in hand.

She searched around for something that would look like an opening. Cake followed to help her out, and they finally found a pile of mounted soil that looked like it had already been dug out, but it was then covered with soil again just to cover the hole.

"So much for 'opening,' " Cake said. Then she raked out her claws. "Allow _me_."

Fionna quickly stepped aside so her best friend could claw at the covered hole. After a while the soil gave in and the assumed hole was revealed. The two immediately hopped into it.

Underneath the hole was a series of tunnels. Since both sides insisted they stick together, it took lots of time to find even a path that _didn't_ lead to a dead end.

The girls finally discovered a different end to one of the paths they took. The whole tunnel became a lot more decent-looking, and soon they found themselves in what looked like a chamber—a witch's spellcasting chamber.

"Shh," Cake shushed at Fionna, putting a finger to her lips, I think the witch's in here."

Carefully, the girls peeked (all while making sure no part of them was exposed), and found an elderly woman mixing potions together in a cauldron.

The witch laughed a hiss. "I hope those two are enjoying themselves in each other's bodies. I'm getting absolutely _sick_ of their bickering!"

"Who's bickering?" Cake muttered.

"Who's that?" The witch immediately turned to the girls' direction; the two automatically clamped their hands over their mouths.

"Thanks, Cake," Fionna grumbled sarcastically.

The witch turned toward them; Cake tensed her claws while Fionna held tightly onto her sword.

The witch glared malevolently. "What are you two kids doing here in my lair?"

"Switch our friends back to normal!" Fionna said, surprised by the power in her voice.

The witch looked at her blankly. "Your friends?"

"Don't pretend you didn't cast a spell on our friends to switch identities. Or are you saying you didn't deliver this flower in front of the Candy Kingdom castle?" Cake shot.

"The flower, yes, it was me. The spell, sure, it was my doing, but the rest of what you said? It's not saying any sense," the witch amended.

"Fionna, can I rip her to shreds _now_?" Cake hissed.

"Hold it, girl, I...I think this witch means what she said," Fionna suddenly said.

Cake looked at her like her best friend had just lost her marbles.

"Explain," Fionna said to the Switch Witch. Though she allowed the witch to explain, she still didn't loosen her grip on her sword.

"Do you have _any_ idea how many sleepless nights I've spent because of all that DANG quarreling between that island bird and that crab? They always go with all that angry chirping and claw-snapping! As if they care who's being disturbed! Well, I gave those two a lesson they wouldn't forget—I switched them all up! Now look who'll be suffering the days and nights away _now_!"

"Yeah, but you overlooked _one_ tiny detail, hag—neither one got the switch," Cake pointed out.

The Switch Witch eyed Cake shrewdly. "Hmm...I suppose you're right about that. Harold,"—she turned to the raven perched on the edge of her table—"why didn't you deliver the box to those two?"

The raven gulped. "It was quite a wind last night," he confessed. "I'm afraid I accidentally dropped the box while delivering it. Sorry—I lied about that last night, just to placate you!"

"You useless bird! Just wait till I pluck all your feathers out!" she screeched.

"Hold it, hold it," Fionna fretted. "What about our friends?"

"What do I care about them?" the Switch Witch grumbled. "The only thing I care about is finally getting a good night's sleep!"

"So you're _not_ going to help us?" Cake snarled.

"That's your problem, kiddos."

"Darn it, hag!" Cake bellowed. "We traveled far enough and we're not letting any part of this to go to waste!"

"Ugh," Fionna groaned. As much as she wanted a good brawling, win or lose, it would still turn to nothing because the Switch Witch still wouldn't reverse the spell no matter who won—she had to find a way to have the witch reverse the spell.

Suddenly, Fionna just hatched up an idea. "Switch Witch," she called. "How about a deal? If Cake and I find a way to quiet down the island bird and the crab, will you switch our friends back to their own selves?"

The Switch Witch seemed to consider it. She frowned, her face thoughtful for a moment. And then:

"Okay, sure, if you kids manage to make those two shut up, I'll reverse the spell. Done deal."

"Now," Fionna began, "can you tell us where they are?"

* * *

_Back in the Candy Kingdom:_

Prince Gumball paced (well, being in Marshall Lee's body, he _floated_ more than he walked) back and forth. His face creased with worry.

"I wonder if those girls are okay?" he murmured, exchanging anxious looks at the castle doors now and then.

Just then, Flame Prince came in through the door with Cinnamon Bun, both of them carrying the lab equipment. Flame Prince and Prince Gumball exchanged a grimace, which Cinnamon Bun saw from the corner of her eye; she started—to her, it didn't make sense the way "Prince Gumball" and "Marshall Lee" looked at each other with such comradeship, such..."friendliness."

Prince Gumball waited until Cinnamon Bun was gone before he spoke to Flame Prince. "You think this whole thing will take a bit longer?"

Flame Prince shrugged. "Maybe so."

"Though I want to be back in my real body, I certainly don't mind if we'll be stuck like this for even a month," Marshall Lee said casually as he burst through the doors, the carpet seemed to smoke underneath his feet.

"Shut up, please, Marshall Lee," Prince Gumball grumbled.

"Can't do, Bubba."

PG growled uselessly.

* * *

_Back to Fionna and Cake:_

"Apologize, you crabby crab!"

"Maybe _you_ should apologize, you squawking feather-brain!"

Fionna and Cake sighed. How were they going to have _any_ hope of solving the problem if neither the island bird nor the crab planned to give in?


	4. Chapter 4

"Okay, girl," Cake huffed. "How in heck can we make these two shut up?"

"I...don't know," Fionna said. Neither one was giving in; and neither was winning the argument either.

"We have _got_ to think of something!" Cake practically begged.

"Let me know when you actually hatch an idea."

The island bird squawked louder (Fionna and Cake covered their ears with a grimace) just as the crabby crustacean snapped his claws with even more vicious force.

Desperate to save their switched-up friends, the girls tried their damnedest to (somehow) put the squabbling animals together. Every attempt, every hour of _trying_ to put them together, all resulted to one thing: failure.

"I'm about to give up, Sister," Cake breathed; she seemed to sweat despite the fact that they never really did anything but talk.

"They're too different people, Cake. If there could be some way to make them quiet at least a _bit_...," Fionna sighed.

"I wish we'd know what they're arguing about, so we can get a better chance, but they're just too busy getting on each other's nerves."

"If we could just get them to talk their problem out..."

Something sparked in Fionna. "Cake, that's just it!"

Cake looked at her best friend with confused eyes. "What are you thinking, girl?"

"You're pretty good at sass-talking, right?"

"Yeah, so...?"

"You think you can do that to them, just enough to get them to spill up? I'm sure a good surly attitude can get them talking."

Cake considered it. "Hmm...That just might work, honey. Anyway, it just might also be the most _useful_ thing I'll be doing compared to everything else we've done together."

"Okay, Cake, I'll tell you what you're going to do. Let's just cross our fingers and hope it'll be worth it."

"Yeah, it's about to be night time," Cake muttered, looking at the sun on its way to the west.

* * *

"Look, feathers! Why don't you just give up and let me have my way!" the crab roared in between snaps.

"I'll be the one giving up?! Say that to my butt feathers!" the island bird squawked in between flapping its wings crazily.

"Hey, guys," Cake said with a secret smirk.

"Cool it, pussy, you're bothering us," the island bird snapped.

"Maybe _you_ should cool it, feather-brain."

Though Cake's suddenly vicious response was intended for the island bird, both animals flinched at the edge of attitude in her voice. For the first time they seemed to actually shut up and really look at the cat.

Cake looked back at them, one eyebrow raised. "Look at you two! Well, _listen to yourselves_, rather. You've been doing nothing but squabble this, berate that, with a little bit of quareling here and there. Sheesh, sometimes I wonder if you two don't get yourselves some throat lozenges sometime or run your throats dry!"

The crab opened his mouth to comment, but Cake hissed at him; the crab cringed back.

"Let me finish, crabby!"

Both animals gulped.

"Maybe it would be WAY BETTER if either one of you would AT LEAST blab about what you've been bickering about! We'll be _way_ better that way!" Heavy sarcasm at the end.

Both animals looked at each other with fear—not fear from the other, but Cake.

Cake tapped her foot impatiently.

"W-well...," the island bird began to stammer. "You—you see—"

"Squawk it out, flappers."

"This crab keeps bothering me all day with his snapping! Snap here! Snap there! Ugh, it's annoying!" the island bird said as he grimaced. "Doesn't he know it's bound to drive _anyone_ insane?!"

"I resent _that_!" the crab protested. "If there was ever really _anything_ worth driving someone nuts it would be your endless flapping of wings! Each time you'd flap a feather drops here and there; I can't ever have a day when I'm _not_ bothered with your feathers! I'm practically going to last my whole life sneezing from those darn feathers of yours!"

"That's not _my_ problem—and anyway, _you_ need to stop all that claw-snapping!" the island bird said coldly.

"No way, _you_ deal with it—but you may have to consider quitting all that wing-flapping, feather-dropping nonsense first!" the crab said with the same level of coldness.

"Quit being a crab!"

"Pluck all your feathers out!"

Fionna looked at Cake panickedly. Cake nodded and built up more power for her next assault upon the squabbling duo.

"Oh, shut up!" Cake hissed ferociously.

Stunned silence.

"I see how it is—neither one of you want to go for a little compromising. The way _I_ see it, _both_ of you expect the other to give in. Well, nothing happened! Let's put it this way: Island Bird"—she looked at the practically frightened bird—"where do you live?"

"The palm tree nearest to the sea," he answered automatically. "I always love looking at the sea when I wake up in the morning...except my mornings are always ruined by the sound of the crab's snapping! Hmmph! It would've been better if I were listening to music than that wretched noise!"

The crab opened his mouth to begin another assault, but Cake silenced him with an icy cat glare.

"And you, Crab?" she asked the nervous crustacean. "Where do _you_ live?"

"I very much prefer the feel of the wind and the company of trees compared to life in the water, so I chose to live underneath the rock nearest to the sea—which is under the island bird's house. And that's the reason his feathers always get to me." He glared at the bird.

"Why don't you move, then?" the island bird snapped. "Go and settle for another residence!"

"And why do _I_ have to?!" the crab retorted. "If someone has to move, it's _you_!"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Fionna trilled. She looked at Cake then back to the two. "Both of you enjoy residence near the sea but just seem to be annoyed with each other, right?"

Both nodded.

"Island Bird, you want to enjoy your mornings and can't seem to 'cause of the crab's claw-snapping,"—she looked at the crab—"have you by any chance an interest in music?"

"Ah, yes," the crab replied gently. "That, my little girl, is my passion, I used to have the time of my life with my castanets, but they have long been gone."

"Just thinking—why don't you try making castanets out of your own claws? I'm sure you'd still be a virtuoso out of making music with your own hands...er, claws, rather."

"Hmm...I'd never considered that, but I shall give it a try." And he began with an attempt to turn his claw-snapping into music."

"Mmmm," the island bird breathed. "I have to admit, that sure sounds...wonderful."

Fionna and Cake exchanged a grin.

"But what about the island bird?" Cake asked.

"Hmm...Island Bird, why is it your feathers always seem to drop whenever you flap your wings?" Fionna asked the bird who, right now, seemed to be enjoying herself.

"Ah, dear, that won't be a problem anymore—when I am stressed, my feathers are more prone to dropping, but now that my mornings will be a lot more peaceful from now on,"—he smiled at the crab, and the girls were surprised to see him return it—"no one has to worry about it."

"But...all that flapping?" Fionna asked.

"That's normal for a bird."

"Crab? You think you can handle the island bird's flapping?"

"As long as it means no more feathers on my face, I'd happily deal with it," the crab said calmly.

"Good," Cake said, her gaze level and suddenly emotionless. "Now you two better behave. I hear another bit of trouble out of you and you'll all face the wrath of Mama Cake!"

Both animals flinched, then nodded obediently.

Now that the problem was solved, the girls looked at each other with a smile of victory and fist-bumped.

* * *

"I see...," The Switch Witch murmured. "So that means I'll be hearing no more bickering out of those two?"

"Yeah, and it also means you have to switch our friends back together, since we had a deal," Fionna said smugly.

"How did you girls do it?"

"We had to do it rough, if you know what I mean," Cake said, smiling at the memory of the animals' terror from her and also secretly hoping she hadn't gone below the belt back there.

"Okay, I'll switch your friends back." The Switch Witch shrugged. "Just give me a minute to prepare the spell that will reverse the switch spell."

* * *

"Okay, this…is totally weird," Prince Gumball commented, looking at the apple in his hand.

"Taste red, Bubba," Marshall Lee urged. "Instead of _thinking_ it tastes bad."

"Well, it's not impossible to get rid of the red hue, but at the same time—"

"There's no time for logic, nerd." Marshall Lee was starting to get annoyed with PG's stalling. "Quit being ignorant and suck it up like a man or I'll burn your buns."

"Fine with me," PG half-bluffed. "Anyway, it's technically _your_ buns that'll get toast, not mine."

"Yeah, but the difference is _you're_ the one who'll feel the burn."

Flame Prince was drinking water, amazed at the tastelessness of it. He was also amazed at how dry his throat had gone for the last several hours since the switch.

PG turned away from Marshall Lee (and all his ribbing) and back to the apple with a sulking expression. Then he sank his fangs into it and, in small but quick spurts, he sucked up the red hue from it (all while keeping a straight face—if Marshall Lee saw that, he'd be rolling on the floor; which probably wouldn't be a bad thing except he'd be setting the floor on fire).

Marshall Lee watched PG suck all the red from the apple with a smug expression.

Just then, Fionna and Cake burst through the door.

"Hey guys," Fionna called. "We finally got it!" Then she rummaged through her bag and took out a box. She opened it and put out another mysterious-looking flower.

"_Another flower?"_ Marshall Lee questioned.

"Witch's a girl, natch," Cake said matter-of-factly.

"Well, you better not touch it, Marshall Lee; this is the only one we have." Then Fionna looked around. The owner of the vampire king's "borrowed" body was nowhere to be found. "Hey, where's Flame Prince?"

But Flame Prince emerged into view before anyone could think much about it. He seemed to carry on a sullen expression, which quickly turned to relief. He noticed everyone's eyes on him, but before Fionna could open her mouth to ask, Flame Prince immediately said, "I just drank too much water, that's all" with a slight blush.

"Okay, guys, go huddle up together like you did before this whole mess started," Cake instructed. "PG, you hold the flower."

Prince Gumball floated down to take the flower from Cake. Then Flame Prince chugged down a glass of water.

Fionna looked at FP and said, "You know, FP, I don't get why you're so obsessed with water."

"This is the last glass of water I'll be taking in, Fionna." Then he put the glass back and joined Prince Gumball.

"Oh well, it was fun seeing Bubba squirm while it lasted." Marshall Lee shrugged then joined the two.

"I think we better keep our distance, girl," Cake said to Fionna. She nodded in agreement and the duo quickly paced several steps away from the three switched-up royalties.

Just like from the previous flower, all the petals fell out and it gave off a violet-hued smoke with a smell that was just as strong and as sickening as the former flower. And, just like from the previous, the boys coughed from the smoke and the smell.

"Can't this witch"—cough—"make a"—cough—"_less_ sickening-scented flower?!" they heard Flame Prince complain.

Finally, the smoke faded until it vanished completely; all three guys had their eyes closed and their hands pressed over their mouths.

Fionna and Cake didn't speak; they waited for _them_ to do so—that way they'd know if the spell worked. Otherwise, Cake would "go back there and claw at the hag bald," as she'd said when they were on their way back.

"Well, I feel like myself," Prince Gumball commented.

"Yes! It worked!" the girls exulted in unison when saw PG's voice came from his own body.

"Well, I'm up here and you're all down there, so it's obvious it worked," Marshall Lee said, lying down in mid-air with his arms folded behind his head.

"Though going back to being hurt by water is a thorn on my side, nevertheless, I'm glad I'm myself again." Flame Prince grinned at the ball of fire in his palm.

The girls gave a sigh of relief. Then Fionna looked at Cake and said, "I wonder how cool would it be if _we _got switched-up?"

Cake rolled her eyes. "Don't fool yourself, Sister—I doubt you can handle my abilities."

"Well, I doubt you can wield a sword."

"Oh _really_, huh? When we _do_ switch, let's see who squirms and who gets the last laugh!"

"_If_ we happen to switch ourselves up," Fionna corrected.

"Let's cross our fingers, then, Sis?"

"You're on, Cake!"

The girls winked at each other, then laughed.

**-The End-**


End file.
